Inquiry

The Republic of Armenia, one of the new nations formed out of the former Soviet Union, gained its independence in 1991, in the aftermath of glasnost and perestroika. In the past decade various struggles have plagued the young country, including a war with Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh Region, an autonomous oblast, or self-governing region (the start of which preceded independence), and an earthquake that ravaged parts of the country in 1988. In the aftermath of these events, various issues have emerged regarding the plight of poor children and poverty in general. The kinds of initiatives that have been undertaken to address this situation and various policy implications are discussed here in interviews conducted with Mr. Simon Balian, Executive Director of the Fund for Armenian Relief (FAR), and Ms. Annette Choolfaian, professor and Director of Health Services Management and Policy at New York Medical College. (It should be noted that the interviews were conducted separately.) They provide valuable insight into the conditions of poverty and how it affects children in this small, newly formed country. In some ways, the situation examined and conditions discussed are expected to parallel those found in other nations that seceded and ultimately gained independence from the former Soviet Union.